The Matchmakers

TWO

"AH, MISS FOSTER AND Sir Faro," a powerful female voice announced from the front of the room as Sophie and Sir Faro hurried into the common area of the Silver Tower, still buckling on their silver capes. "How kind of you to join us."

Sophie blushed. Her relationship with Master Cadence may have improved enough since Level Three that her mentor didn't cringe at her attempts to mimic anymore, but she still seemed to make it her personal mission to admonish Sophie every chance she got. "Sorry Master Cadence," Sophie apologized, surprised at how strong her voice came out. "I promise it won't happen again."

"It better not," her Linguistics mentor threatened, though her tone lacked any trace of hostility, "or I'll be forced to give you detention. As you know, tardiness in the Silver Tower is not tolerated." With a withering glare, she turned to address the rest of the prodigies. "Compared to the year you have ahead of you, Level Seven will seem like a walk in the park. Your previous Beacon, Master Vannes, was far too kind to you, in my opinion. For those of you whom are new to the Silver Tower, which is everyone but Miss Foster, I am Master Cadence Talle, the Beacon of the Silver Tower. You are only one year away from entering the nobility, and it is my job to get you there, so in the Silver Tower we abide by a three strike policy. There are three ways to acquire strikes. Every five tardies count as one strike. Every two unapproved absences count as one strike. And every single unapproved exit of the Silver Tower during the school week counts as one strike. One strike results in a letter sent home to your parents. Two strikes result in disciplinary action. Three strikes result in an expulsion from the school, which ends your chances of entering the nobility. Since I became the Beacon of the Silver Tower almost three years ago, there hasn't been a single expulsion due to the strike policy. Please don't be the first." Here she looked intently into the crowd, and as Sophie followed her gaze she spotted a cheeky Keefe Sencen winking at Master Cadence. Sophie barely managed to contain her laugh, and Sir Faro elbowed her softly in the ribs, reminding her of where she was. "I want to elaborate on exiting the Silver Tower. You will be fed here. You will sleep here. You will study here. If you are ill you will be treated here. And you will not leave unless it is a weekend or there is some kind of emergency. Appropriate emergencies would be deaths and wars. Nothing else constitutes leaving during the week. Remember, this rule is in place to help you. Uninterrupted study is crucial to thriving as a Level 8. Is this clear?"

"Yes," the prodigies chorused.

"I have three more quick announcements before I allow you to go to your first session. This year, your mentors are the best of the best, some of the most talented in their respective fields. I expect you each to treat them as such. Respect them and don't waste their time, because it is infinitely more valuable than yours. Do you all understand?"

"Yes," the prodigies chorused.

"Secondly, I have heard rumors going around among the students about the stairway. It is indeed a Vortinator 200. There are 200 floors in the Silver Tower, and it would be ridiculous to expect you to climb all 200 of those flights of stairs. Please be safe on the Vortinator. Unsafe behavior on the Vortinator will result in disciplinary action. That's all the warning I will give you. Do you understand?"

"Yes," the prodigies chorused again.

"A third and final announcement. On the tenth floor, there is a hallway filled with mirrors. Each of them holds a lesson for you to learn. You must learn each lesson in order to graduate. Your Abilities mentor will give you more information. And I wish each and every one of you the best of luck on your journey to enlightenment. You are dismissed to your first class."

As the older students hurried to try out the Vortinator, Sophie hung back.

"What?" a familiar voice asked as someone poked her in the back. "You still afraid of moving staircases?"